If you live in the UK it won't have escaped your notice that for the past week or so, and especially the last couple of weekends, most of the country has been basking in sweltering temperatures.

While most of us love to feel the sun on our backs occasionally, our furry friends with their extra insulation can really struggle in the hot weather.

Last week we purchased a Cool Coat for the Black Dog to help him keep cool in the weather; we mentioned it on Twitter & Facebook and have had such a response with people asking about it and where we got it from that we thought we should write a blog post.

Here is is wearing his new favourite piece of clothing:

The Black Dog models his 'Cool Coat' - perfect for keep him chilled in hot weather!

So what is a Cool Coat? The best way we can describe it, is that it is like a big chamois leather - you soak it in water for a few minutes before you put it on, then simply wring it out and put in on the dog wet and it acts like a wet blanket, helping to keep him cool as the water evaporates.

The makers say it can stay wet for up to four hours, obviously this depends on how hot it is, but The Black Dog has worn his for several hours now on very hot days and we have only had to re-wet it once or twice on each day.

The Cool Coat may not be the cheapest piece of dog apparel you will ever buy, but ours has proven invaluable in the last few weeks.

You can find out more about Cool Coats at the website of their manufacturers - Prestige Pets.